[TN-Bird] House Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Greene Co., TN)
- From: Don Miller <raincrow@xxxxxxx>
- To: Bristol-Birds <bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Butternuts <butternuts@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, TN-Bird <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 08 Apr 2005 22:50:16 -0400
April 8, 2005
I observed (heard, actually) two first-of-spring birds this morning--a
House Wren and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, both at our home in
Greeneville. The House Wren was pouring its characteristic bubbling
cascade of notes from a perch somewhere near the edge of the yard, while
the gnatcatcher was moving slowly through the trees in the backyard as
it sporadically uttered its trademark querulous "peent" or "spee" note.
There is an interesting observation concerning gnatcatchers on p. 242 of
Charles Nicholson's Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Tennessee: the "song
is primarily associated with courtship activities . . . and infrequently
sung after early May." Although I haven't had as much experience with
gnatcatchers as has Nicholson, I have to say that my observations tend
toward his. I haven't kept records on the seasonal timing of
gnatcatcher songs, but I recall hearing comparatively few of them, and I
can't recall any from late in the year. The "spee" or "peent" call is
definitely a more prominent part of its vocal repertoire, so much so, in
fact, that when I do hear the bird sing I find myself anticipating, and
even looking forward to, the call notes interspersed among the warbles,
squeaks, and other sounds that compose the song.
The gnatcatcher is a songbird that is better thought of as a callbird.
Don Miller
Greeneville, TN
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